Coates has fallen down to fifth choice central defender at Anfield despite showing early promise upon his arrival in the Premier League and even missed out on a place on the bench for Liverpool’s thumping Premier League victory against Tottenham Hotspur yesterday.

The 23 year-old, who was born in Montevideo but has a Scottish father, joined Liverpool from Uruguayan outfit Nacional in 2011 and initially showed huge promise with his technical ability on the ball, but has struggled to develop as a defender capable of nailing down a place in the Liverpool first team.

Their loss appears to be Sunderland’s gain, with Gus Poyet securing his compatriot on a season long loan deal as the Black Cats look to recover from a frustrating start to the season, that saw them draw their opening two games before a disappointing 1-0 defeat at Queens Park Rangers this weekend.

The deal is also a significant one for another Liverpool player, Fabio Borini, as it means that the Italian will not be able to return to Sunderland on loan after a successful spell last season, as they are only allowed one player from the same club to join on a temporary deal.